JP3444914B2 - A system comprising a container having a slit valve as a vent valve and a liquid contained in the container - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a discharge orifice and a sealing valve covering the discharge orifice, the sealing valve including a flexible concave top, the top curved toward the discharge orifice. And the top comprises at least one slit extending from a surface facing the orifice to a surface opposite thereto, the slit being configured to open when the pressure at the sealing valve exceeds a distributed threshold pressure. A sealing valve, a side wall and an upper wall covering the side wall, the cap covering the sealing valve in a storage mode of the container, the cap preventing inversion of the top of the valve; The present invention relates to a system including a container including a cap configured to include valve restraining means that is disengaged from a sealed valve for dispensing liquid and a liquid contained therein.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Such a system is disclosed in European Patent Application EP-A.
-278,125.

In this patent application, the flexible container is a sealing valve made of a relatively flexible material such as silicone rubber, poly (vinyl chloride), urethane, ethylene vinyl acetate or styrene-butadiene copolymer. It is described as having. When the container is turned upside down and a squeezing force is applied to the container, the pressure increases and the sealing valve opens, and liquid is dispensed through the slit. Removal of the squeezing force closes the slit and prevents liquid outflow from the container. The strength of the sealing valve is sufficient to prevent the slit from opening with the hydrostatic pressure of the liquid when the container is inverted. The sealing valve is covered by a cap to prevent the slit from opening due to the impact of throttling force or drop that is inadvertently applied to the container during storage or transportation of the container. A valve restraining means for preventing the top from being reversed is provided. The valve restraining means includes a first annular rim disposed in the cap adjacent the concave top of the valve and a second annular rim concentric with the first annular rim, the second annular rim sealing Mounted on the flexible side wall of the valve to apply radial pressure against the sealed valve, keeping the slit closed. The rim is provided with a vent slot to allow air trapped inside the annular rim of the valve restraining means to escape into the open air upon inadvertent compression of the container. This prevents dislocation of the valve restraining means upon sudden inadvertent compression of the container.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a system including a container and a liquid therein, which container allows for precise liquid dispensing and hermetic storage of its contents.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a system including a container and a liquid therein, wherein the container is provided with means for reducing the pressure in the container under various storage and shipping conditions. is there.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a non-cylindrical container.

[0007]

The system according to the invention is such that in storage mode the liquid in said container is capable of forming a predetermined gas or vapor pressure and the container is in an upright position in storage mode. The steam inside is capable of contacting the sealing valve, and the restraining means is adapted to open the slit at the top when the force exerted by the steam on the sealing valve exceeds the steam threshold pressure.

In particular in the case of contents which form a vapor pressure or which decompose to give off gas, for example those containing household bleaches or peroxides, hypochlorides, perborates, The characteristics of the sealing valve are used not only for dripless dispensing but also for the discharge of gas or steam to the outside air. During storage, the pressure of the gas or vapor may rise to ambient pressure of 30 mbar to 10 mbar or higher. Especially in the case of non-cylindrical flexible containers, in the absence of ventilation, this condition would result in severe container expansion.

By adjusting the length of the slit, the flexibility of the concave top of the sealing valve and the distance from the concave top to the valve restraining means, the steam threshold pressure at which the slit slightly opens for ventilation is set to a predetermined value. Can be set to a value. Therefore, the flexibility of the sealing valve and the length of the slit can be selected for good dispensing of the liquid having a predetermined viscosity, and in this case, the vapor threshold pressure generated by aeration during storage is determined by the valve suppressing means. Adjusted by changes in. Unlike the container described in European Patent Application EP-A-278125, the container in the system according to the invention must be in an upright position during storage. In this case, the sealing valve is placed in the upper part of the container and the steam contacts the inner surface of the concave top of the sealing valve to allow ventilation.

In one embodiment according to the invention,
The valve restraining means is formed by a protrusion extending from the inner surface of the upper wall of the cap toward the concave top of the sealing valve for steam threshold adjustment.

By selectively limiting the movement of part of the concave top of the sealing valve when the cap is closed, the steam threshold pressure at which the opening of the slit occurs can be reduced. In the dispensing mode, the cap is removed from the sealing valve so that the slit opens at the dispensing threshold pressure, which is substantially independent of the steam threshold pressure. In this case, it is preferable that the projection has a dome shape, and that the dome projection has a curved surface that extends in parallel with a predetermined distance from the concave top portion of the valve.

In another embodiment of the invention, the projection forms an inner wall, the projection of the inner wall on the concave top of the valve surrounding the slit, the lower edge of the inner wall. Are located above the concave top, so that the internal wall and the concave top define a vent chamber as the pressure in the container rises. As the pressure in the container increases, the concave top of the valve presses against the lower edge of the inner wall. The slit is confined within the vent chamber defined by the interior wall and the concave top. When the pressure in the container reaches the vapor threshold pressure, the slit opens and a certain amount of vapor is transferred into the vent chamber. As a result, the pressure in the container and the vent chamber equilibrates, closing the slit and retracting the concave top, thus allowing air trapped in the vent chamber to vent to ambient air. By changing the diameter of the aeration chamber and the distance between the lower edge of the inner wall and the concave top, the steam threshold pressure can be adjusted. If desired, adjust the vapor threshold pressure above the dispense threshold by providing the vent chamber with a sufficiently small diameter and placing the lower edge of the inner wall near the concave top of the sealing valve. Things are possible.

In another embodiment of the system according to the invention, the cap has a spacer connected to its upper wall, said spacer being in the closed position of the cap to the valve concave top of the valve restraining means. It is placed on the block surface to limit movement. As a result, the position of the cap with respect to the sealing valve is always accurately determined, so that the slit can be prevented from being opened by pushing the cap over the sealing valve too much.

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. 1 relates to a flexible container 1 such as a blow molded plastic container made of any of several materials such as polypropylene, polyethylene, poly (vinyl chloride). The particular structural material selected for a given application is generally determined by factors such as product compatibility, cost, and permeability. The container can also be made of non-flexible thermoplastic material or metal. In the case of a flexible container, the most important parameters are its flexibility sufficient to allow the container 1 to be manually deformed to expel its contents through the sealing valve 3 and its non-deformation when external forces are removed. It has a strong restoring force that returns to the state and causes a substantially instantaneous pressure drop in the container and assists in closing the sealing valve 3 in use. The sealing valve 3 is covered by a cap 5, which prevents the concave top 4 of the sealing valve 3 from reversing during storage of the container 1 and seals the contents in the container 1 from the outside air during transportation of the container. Keep leakproof.

Many liquids contained in a flexible container that is sealed by a cap cause various problems due to gassing or relatively high vapor pressure. The pressure buildup inside the container may cause deformation of the container, causing the container to become unstable due to expansion of the bottom of the container, and may fall. In one test, a volume 1 sealed 1% hydrochloric acid container with 10% headspace was stored at 50 ° C. The measured forming pressure is 120 mbar after 3 days of storage and 1 after 6 days of storage.
It was 50 mbar. Under such a condition that the gas pressure or the vapor pressure is controlled, the use of the sealing valve as shown in FIG. 2 causes the gas or the vapor to be aerated when the internal pressure of the container 1 reaches a predetermined threshold pressure. This threshold pressure can be selected to be 10 mbar to 500 mbar or more, preferably 40 to 150 mbar or more, which is the atmospheric pressure.

FIG. 2 shows the neck portion 9 of the container 1, which has a wall 11 which surrounds the discharge orifice 13 of the container. The discharge orifice 13 is covered by a sealing valve 3, which has a concave top 4 and a flexible annular side wall portion 15.
Including and A flange 17 of the sealing valve, which rests on the upper edge of the wall 11 of the neck part 9, is connected to the annular wall part 15. The sealing valve 3 is made of a different material that is more flexible than the container 1, such as silicone rubber, poly (vinyl chloride), urethane, ethylene vinyl acetate, and styrene-butadiene copolymer, and has a fixing ring 19 for the neck portion 9. Sealed and tightened by this fixing ring 19
Has a snap edge 16 which engages an outer peripheral groove 18 of the wall 11 of the container.

A linear slit 25 extends diametrically of the concave top 4 and is closed when the concave top 4 is in its inner concave position. When a compressive force is applied to the side surface of the flexible container 1, the internal pressure of the container rises, and without the cap 5, the concave top 4 of the valve is inverted so that the slit 25 is opened and the contents are removed from the container 1. Will be distributed. Upon dispensing the contents of the container, the container is held in the overturned position as shown in FIG. When the sum of the liquid head contacting the concave top 4 and the pressure when the user applies the compressive force to the container 1 reaches the partial pressure value, the slit 25 opens as shown in FIG. Be done. When the compressive force is removed from the container after the dispensing of the contents has been directed and drip-free carried out, the slit 25 closes and the internal pressure of the container equals the pressure of the outside air so that the container 1 is in its undeformed state. Air is drawn into the container until it returns to. Depending on the desired dispensing characteristics desired, for example, a thin jet of liquid is desired, a thick jet is desired, or it is desired to dispense accurately in small amounts, the length and number of slits used. Can be selected.

If there are a plurality of slits 25 in the concave top 4, the distribution characteristics can be changed by adjusting the arrangement of these slits, these slits being parallel to each other and in the radial direction. And can be crossed. European Patent Application EP-A-1603 cited here
At 36, a theoretical explanation of the function of the sealing valve 3 is given.

In order to prevent the opening of the sealing valve 3 during storage and transportation of the container 1, the sealing valve 3 is covered by a cap, which is cylindrical as shown in FIG. 2, but oval, It includes an outer wall 27 having an arbitrary cross section such as a square or a triangle, and an upper wall body 29. In this embodiment, the top wall 29 is positioned at a distance from the valve top 4 to prevent inversion of the valve top 4 and to prevent the contents from being discharged. In the case of a container containing a liquid that evaporates while being stored, the slit 25 is expanded by the internal pressure of the container, and vapor is vented from the container into the space surrounded by the cap 5 and the sealing valve 3. The cap must be formed so as to increase the distance between the upper wall 29 and the sealing valve 3. The cap 5 can be provided with a vent hole 31 to assist the escape of steam from the inside of the cap 5 to the outside air. This vent can be omitted if the cap 5 is non-hermetically secured to the neck portion 9 of the container.

The cap 5, as shown in FIGS. 2, 5 and 6, comprises internal threads 21 which engage corresponding threads 13 on the outer surface of the wall 11 of the neck portion of the container, from the container Can be detached. The cap can also be a flip-top cap that remains attached to the container during dispensing, as shown in FIGS. 1, 8 and 9.
Of course, the cap 5 can be attached to the neck portion of the container by other known means such as a snap joint.

The presence of the vent 31 is necessary when the cap 5 is secured to the container neck portion 9 by a relatively fluid tight snap joint.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, the cap 5 comprises valve restraining means therein, which restraining means comprises a projection 35 extending towards the concave top 4 of the valve. These protrusions 35 prevent dispensing of the contents from the container by restraining the movement of the top 4 so that only a very slight opening of the slit 25 occurs. When the pressure inside the container reaches the vapor threshold pressure, the top portion 4 is pressed against the ring-shaped protrusion 35, and the vapor passes from the inside of the container through the slit 25 slightly opened to the ring protrusion 35 and the concave top portion 4. Enter the space between. A notch 37 in the lower part of the protrusion 35 forms a ventilation channel through which steam travels radially towards the threads 21, 23 of the cap 3 and escapes into the ambient air through these threads. The cap 3 comprises an annular spacer member 39 mounted on the upper side 40 of the fixing ring 19 in order to determine the distance between the lower end of the projection 35 and the concave top 4 which determines the vapor threshold value for the generation of aeration. The lower edge of the spacer 39 is provided with a notch 41 for passing vapor between the spacer and the fixing ring 19.

In the alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the projections are dome-shaped and the surface of which complements the concave top 4. Since this projection adjoins substantially the entire concave top 4, it gives the sealing valve 3 a high resistance against opening due to accidental high impacts on the container 1 during storage and shipping. In order to prevent the slit 25 from being sealed by the dome-shaped projection, the dome-shaped projection is provided with a channel 28 orthogonal to the slit 25.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the lower edge 43 ″ of the annular projection 35 is arranged at a constant distance in the circumferential direction of this projection 35 with respect to the concave portion 4. The internal pressure of the container increases. At this time, the concave top 4 is pushed upwards and abuts against the lower end 43 ″ of the projection, so that the projection 35 and the concave top 4 define a ventilation chamber 47. When the internal pressure of the container further increases, the slit 25 opens, and vapor enters the ventilation chamber 47 from the inside of the container. A pressure equilibrium between the interior of the container and the vent chamber results, which results in the slit 25.
Closed and the concave top 4 regains its inwardly concave position.
The gas or vapor trapped in the vent chamber 47 exits into the atmosphere through the lower end 43 ″ of the protrusion and the concave top. The diameter of the vent chamber 47 and the protrusion 35 and the concave top 4
By changing the interval between and, the steam threshold pressure at which the slit 25 opens can be adjusted to be higher than the dispense threshold pressure of the sealing valve having a specific dispensing characteristic.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the lower edge 43 'of the protrusion 35 contacts the upper surface of the concave top 4 in the first part 45 on one side of the slit 25 of the slit valve. In the portion of the concave top portion 4 opposite to the slit 25, it is arranged at a constant distance from the upper side surface of the concave top portion. As the internal pressure of the container increases, the second portion 47 of the concave top 4 is pushed upwards to abut the lower edge 43 'of the protrusion,
It is held by this lower edge. This state is shown in FIG. When the internal pressure increases, the concave portion of the sealing valve 3 is deformed unevenly, so that the vapor threshold value pressure at which the slit 25 is opened is different from the divided threshold value pressure. Ring-shaped protrusion 35
The steam threshold pressure can be controlled to a specific value by adjusting the radius d1 of the protrusion and the distance from the lower edge 43 ′ of the protrusion to the concave top portion 4. This specific value can be adjusted to a predetermined dispensing characteristic. Can be higher or lower than the partial pressure value of the sealing valve 3 having

[Brief description of drawings]

1 is a partial cross-sectional view of a container having a sealing valve and a cap.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the sealing valve and the cap having a structure in which the valve suppressing means is formed by the upper wall of the cap.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a sealing valve that dispenses contents.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the sealing valve and the cap according to the present invention in which the valve restraining means is formed by a protrusion on the inner surface of the cap.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the sealing valve and the cap according to the present invention having a structure in which the valve suppressing means is formed by the dome-shaped protrusion of the cap.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing another embodiment of the valve suppression means according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing still another embodiment of the valve suppressing means according to the present invention.

9 is an enlarged view of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 container 3 Sealing valve 4 valve concave top 5 caps 9 container neck 13 Orifice 15 Annular side wall of sealing valve 16 screw threads 17 Sealing valve flange 18 screw threads 19 valve fixing ring 25 Slit of sealing valve 27 Side wall of the cap 29 Cap upper wall 35 Protrusion 36 Domes 39 Spacer 40 block surface 43 ', 43 "lower edge of protrusion 47 Ventilation chamber

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Nadi, Villany Strombeek-Bevel, Belgium (no address) (72) Inventors Johann, Willie, Declerk Iktegem, Stachionstraat, Belgium, 376 (72) Inventor Jorgen , Hernelt, Riesebert, Bruges, Belgium, 65 (56) References JP-A-63-248662 (JP, A) Actual development: 57-107759 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB) Name) B65D 51/16

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A discharge orifice (13); and a sealing valve (3) covering said discharge orifice (13), said sealing valve comprising a flexible concave top (4). (4) is curved towards the discharge orifice (13) and said top (4) extends from at least one surface facing said orifice (13) to the opposite surface thereof.
A slit valve (3), which is provided with three slits (25), the slit (25) being opened when the pressure in the seal valve exceeds the distributed pressure value, and the side wall (27) and the side wall. A cap (5) including an overlying upper wall (29), said cap covering a sealing valve (3) in a storage mode of the container, said cap (5) comprising a top (4) of said valve. A container (1) containing a cap (5) adapted to prevent reversal and to include valve restraining means which is disengaged from the sealing valve (3) for dispensing of liquid, and contained therein. In the storage mode, the liquid in the container can form a predetermined gas pressure or vapor pressure in the storage mode, and the container is in the upright position in the storage mode so that the gas or vapor in the container is sealed. It can come in contact with the valve and When the force applied to the sealing valve by the steam (3) exceeds the vapor go value pressure
The restraint means is configured to open the slit at the top, and the valve restraint means includes a recess of the sealing valve (3) from an inner surface of the upper wall body (29) for adjusting a vapor threshold value. The projection is formed by a projection extending toward the top (4), and the projection has a dome shape, and the dome-shaped projection (36)
Has a curved surface extending in parallel at a predetermined distance from the concave top (4) of the valve. 2. The sealing valve (3) comprises a flange (17) connected to its annular side wall (15), said flange (1)
7) is supported by the top of the neck (9) of the container, and a fixing ring (19) having a central hole surrounds the annular side wall (15) of the sealing valve (3) and the flange (1).
7) overlying the retaining ring (1) to clamp the sealing valve (3) onto the discharge orifice (13).
System according to claim 1, characterized in that 9) comprises connecting means (16) for engaging complementary connecting means (18) on the container neck (9). 3. The cap (5) has a spacer (39) connected to its upper wall (29), said spacer (3)
9) is characterized in that, in the closed position of the cap, it rests on the blocking surface (40) for limiting the movement of said valve restraining means (29, 35, 36) towards the valve concave top (4). The system according to claim 1 or 2. 4. A container used in the system according to claim 1.